Meeting the Parents
by Greengirl72
Summary: They were lost. Found? Never mind. Yes? NO. Good? Traumatic. Well, despite the circumstances, they still have each other. . . Right? Time Travel fic. May be an AU. The Batboys meet each others' parents. Of course there's a Batman intervening/intruding every once in awhile. Rated T because mostly because of Jason's expletives. Probably.
1. One Untimely Incident - 1

**Ok, so this is the first story i have ever written, so please don't judge too harshly, but feel free to give some constructive criticism. I'm still learning how to write. I own absolutely nothing. Except for the story plot, of course.**

 _One Untimely Incident_

Nightwing overlooked the dark Gotham district that he was patrolling from a dark rooftop, searching for nothing, almost lost in thought. The night had been pretty peaceful, no serious crimes had been enacted, but that should have made Nightwing more alert. Something was different.

He hadn't heard about anything big that was about to go down either, so he headed over to the rendezvous point. Normally, he would be back in Bludhaven, patrolling its filthy streets that had somehow become as much a home to him as Gotham, but he had gone back to spend time with his patchwork family before heading back to legal crime fighting as an officer of the law.

Silently making his way to the roof of the small coffee shop he and the rest of his brothers were to meet at before going back to the cave, he constantly blew his somewhat long, unkempt hair away from his face. Nearly reaching his destination, he recognized the silhouettes of Robin and Red Robin. As he leaped onto the adjacent roof, he huffed as he brushed another stray hair from his face.

"Nightwing." Red Robin greeted somewhat tonelessly, albeit with a slight hopeful grimace which meant, _Thank you for saving me from the Demon Brat._

"Tt-" Robin dismissed with an annoyed expression, all the while sending a not quite discreet glare toward his predecessor.

Nightwing suddenly adopted a mildly worried expression. "Where's Hood?" he asked, fiddling with the stray strands of hair. "Have you seen him recently?"

Then with impeccable timing, as if to answer his question, Red Hood leapt onto the roof, displaying his infamous shit eating grin. The other three were just grateful that he wasn't scowling. That meant he was angry. Nobody wants to deal with an angry/grumpy/angsty Hood.

"Hey Goldie, Replacement, Demon Brat!" Then the corners of his mouth drooped too far down for comfort.

"Why the fuck did you ask me to come here and waste my precious time with you little shits? I was having a good time until you texted me and screwed with my plans. It'd better be something important." His voice hinted at the dangerous, yet harmless warning.

"Hey, I'm not little." Nightwing whined. Everybody just stared at him, pondering his selective understanding, until he sighed in resignation. "Why were you so late anyway Li'l Wing?"

Jason took off the bucket and proceeded to, what looked like, roll his eyes behind the red domino mask. "I was fashionably late. Ever heard of it? And stop calling me that."

Nightwing sighed. Again. His brothers just seemed like sigh magnets considering the amount of sighs that occurred every time he was within range. "Okay. Back to business. Or something. Can we just spend tonight together doing something?" Eyebrows raised as he emitted another sigh. "I'm leaving Gotham tomorrow for Bludhaven, and you know how little time I get off, so can we pleeeeeaaaaaasssssssseeeee spend some time together? I never get to stay and be with you guys for anything fun."

The other batboys finally acquiesced to his request after succumbing to the whining and puppy eyes that Dick tried to make with the mask on. They decided to throw on their hoodies, take off the masks, wear sunglasses, and catch up in the little coffee shop below. They would just go with the flow that night. nothing exact was planned.

That turned out to be the first big mistake.

 **RobinsRobinsRobinsRobinsRobinsRobinsRobins**

The cool, slightly polluted night air burned their lungs as all four walked into the quaint little coffee shop. After they settled down and ordered some drinks, they began to re-knit their relationships as they divulged in stories of what they had encountered the past few years.

The owner of the shop listened to their laughter from behind the kitchen door and smile for the first time in many moons. This was the reason she had started the little business that had meant so much to her. Family was important, and she was glad that she could indirectly help them to keep together, what her family could not. With that, her smile turned slightly melancholy as she walked back into the depths of her small kitchen to serve her few other customers.

 **RobinsRobinsRobinsRobinsRobinsRobinsRobins**

After they had had their fill, the four brothers filed out of the warm building and into the chilly street, shivering slightly under the dim, flickering glow of the old streetlight.

"Tt- What are we doing here Grayson. We are supposed to patrol when we are in costume, are we not?" Damian asked sardonically, though without any actual bite.

"Well, I guess we are in costume, so why don't we go stop some crime." Dick said with a challenging grin. The grin was returned and hoodies were ripped off as they made their own separate ways up to the rooftops.

The four bats immediately split up, each heading in one direction. The goal of the game was to take out as many baddies as possible, and whoever had the most take downs in an hour won.

Splitting up was the next big mistake.

- _Time Skip_ -

As they met back on the coffee shop roof, none of them noticed the four pairs of yellow illuminated eyes watching from the darkness.

"Hood, Red, Robin, how many did you guys get." Nightwing asked smugly.

"32." _Smirk._

"30." _Frown._

"Tt-. 33" _Eyes narrowed._

"Well, I got- Bum Bum BUM! 40! Yes!" Nightwing executed a perfect front flip as he congratulated himself.

"Shut up, Dickface." Red Hood put his helmet-bucket back on.

"..." Red Robin just looked at Nightwing exasperatedly.

"This is ridiculous! Nightwing, act your own age. I attained maturity, how have you not!" Robin demanded, glaring.

"Sorry Li'l D, I didn't mean to-" Nightwing gasped as all four of them were simultaneously pulled into the dark.

Everything faded out of existence as the four were rendered unconscious.

 **RobinsRobinsRobinsRobinsRobinsRobinsRobins**

Waking up, they found themselves on the pavement. They seemed to on the same street, though it looked slightly different. The difference, they quickly realized, was that it was daytime.

"Shit!" Jason's voice echoed down the street, eliciting a few curious stares from people passing by. He groaned as he peeled himself off of the cement. Standing up, the others soon following, he stared at a nearby newspaper stand, paling with sudden realization of their current situation.

A crowd was quickly gathering to ogle at the strange men/boys who had appeared in odd vigilante-like clothing. Some were snapping pictures, and a few of the braver ones were trying to talk to them.

But the only thing that had captured Jason's rapt attention was the date on the stand. _July 20th, 1999._

 **If anyone actually likes this story, I will be updating at least once a week unless I'm super busy. Thx for reading! (Please tell me how to make this better)**


	2. Falling Never Hurt Anybody - 2

**Okay, so, sorry about the short chapter, I'm glad that people actually liked the first chapter despite my insufficient writing skills. Reminder:All characters and backstories belong to DC.**

Falling Never Hurt Anybody

 _But the only thing that had captured Jason's rapt attention was the date on the stand. July 20th, 1999._

The others groaned as they shook out their sore muscles. Tim tried to stand up and grimaced in pain.

"Baby Bird, are you okay?!" Dick asked in alarm. The seventeen year old gritted out a response.

"I think my knee is dislocated." He looked on the verge of passing out. Just because he got hurt badly every other month didn't mean he was immune to immense pain. He was just used to it.

Tim collapsed on the pavement as his pain overrode his senses. The others knew he could stay awake while experiencing extreme agony, but the other reason he wasn't still conscious was sleep deprivation. The teen had an unhealthy habit of staying awake for days at a time to get ahead of the game. None of them quite understood why, though. Tim just called them complacent.

Dick picked Tim up, bridal style and hoped it minimally affected his injured appendage. Then he noticed Jason's silence.

"Hood, what are you staring at?" Damian inquired civilly. Dick looked at him weirdly, then gave a grunt of agreement. Then they both turned to stare at whatever had been so interesting that it had kept Jason from bugging them or worrying about Tim's health.

What they turned to see caused the the same amount of shock as, if not more than Jason. Dick suddenly shoved Tim (as carefully as he could, mind you) into Jason's (unsteady) arms and threw up on the side of the street.

The encircling crowd quickly drew away from the unappetizing sight and the repulsive smell, some glaring at him in contempt, and others eyeing him with concern. He just stumbled back to his brothers in the middle of what had once been a quiet, clear street.

Now, it was filled with people who had come to see the small band of boys that had appeared out of nowhere wearing kevlar and vigilante suits. Then, a mic was shoved into Damian's face as he watched Dick with concern that he'd never admit.

It was the arrival of the reporters. The usual response was to duck and run from the invaders, but there was a man down, and they couldn't possibly leave people behind to the mercy of the predators, especially family.

"Who are you?" _Push._

"Do you work with Batman?" _Shove_.

"You do know that vigilantism is prohibited, right?" _Snort_.

"Will you be operating in Gotham?" _Click_.

"Where did you come from?" _Bump_.

"Why are you here?" _Stare_.

Finally, the brothers had had enough. Damian glared straight into the cameras protruding from the intense crowd.

"I understand that you are intrigued by our situation, but our business is not yours, so please, I _suggest_ you remove yourselves from the premises or I will be compelled to remove you with force."

The glint in his eye suggested the satisfaction that he'd acquired from threatening the stunned crowd. Everyone widened the berth they had around the four crime fighters, not trusting that it was an idle threat, as they knew nothing about the visiting party.

Turning around, the brothers found themselves surrounded on all sides, hounded by the press and the crowd. Then they heard wailing and the approaching lights and were never more grateful for when the police arrived.

The crowd dispersed quickly with the police there, and about five minutes later, were left completely alone with the police and few lingering people, hoping to catch a glimpse of some action.

"Who are you?" a youthful police officer that was tall, intimidating, and well built asked authoritatively, odd for someone so young.

"We don't mean any harm, we've just arrived here under unknown circumstances." Tim answered curtly, purposefully avoiding any vital information that could destroy their timeline and create another flashpoint.

As the officer approached, the nametag revealed itself to read Harvey Bullock. Dick and Jason both had to stifle a laugh at how different he looked from the hulking, overweight, grump from their time.

"Where did you come from?" Bullock asked firmly, not even trying to hide that he was prying. His less than subtle interrogation shook the boys from their young Bullock induced snickering and without any warning, Jason slung Tim onto his back and they bolted.

 **RobinsRobinsRobinsRobinsRobins**

Running from the police was hard. It wasn't as hard for them as it would have been for a civilian, but it was still hard, especially running with a fragile deadweight on your back.

The boys followed Jason because he was the one that knew these streets the best and how to avoid the cops (being a former street kid did have a few perks. Very few.).

The cars were hot on their trail, making the tortuous twists and turns of the narrow streets, straining to make the sharp turns without crashing into the corners.

Breathing heavily, Jason pulled everyone into a dark empty alley right as the wailing automobiles sped by. He then proceeded to roughly dump Tim onto the dirty alley ground.

He sat up spluttering then groaned, looking around at the change of scenery, then back at his brothers.

"What happened?!" he demanded, examining them for any injuries or abnormalities. "Well?" He peered at them expectantly.

Jason shook his head. "Not now, we need to get someplace safe. Do we have any money?"

Damian pulled out the emergency credit card that Bruce had given him. It was connected to the secret/Bat account and its withdrawals were untraceable. Of course everyone had one, but Dick and Jay had left theirs back at their apartments/safe houses because they had their own accounts.

Tim also pulled his out just to show that he had his card because he was still a minor. Then Dick remembered Tim's dislocated knee.

He had Jason and Damian hold him down while he popped his knee back into place. Tim gritted his teeth and closed his eyes as he prepared himself for the wrenching pain that would indubitably occur in a matter of seconds.

He grunted as he felt the bone shifting, and then groaned when it was back in place. He looked for the silver lining before having to resign and come back out of his shell. At least his knee was back in place and they weren't being prosecuted for something illegal that he just knew his brothers had started.

Opening his eyes, he found Dick's face staring at him in concern. Swatting away the intrusive head, he tried to assess their situation.

Jason grunted in the back, trying to determine the exact same thing that his replacement was. They could find a back alley motel that would be enough to sustain them, but he gave it a second thought and disproved the idea, knowing that his 'brothers' would insist on at least having a decent accommodation during their stay in the past.

Since their hoodies were in some dump in the future, they were gonna have to go shopping for something to help them camouflage with the rest of the population before finding a place to stay.

Helping Tim up, Jason handed him off to Dick, knowing full well that if he was the one trying to help Baby Bird around, it would be really fucking uncomfortable for both of them because of their extremely obvious height difference.

Damian leaned against the stained brick wall, scowling and contemplating their situation just like all good Bats. Something wasn't right with Grayson, and he knew it.

Back when Dick had taken the responsibility of the cowl, he'd been wallowing in a lot of depression blended with grief and guilt, and even though he was presently doing a remarkable job of keeping his current feelings under wraps, Damian still knew something was wrong.

He would address the problem later, for at the moment, Drake had stupidly gone and gotten himself hurt and become a burden.

Dick watched all of his brothers with satisfaction, forcing down the torrent of raw emotional torture threatening to engulf him. He saw all of them working as a (sort of) team, and for once, they were finally whole in a way that they hadn't even begun to even attempt to achieve in a long time. The only people missing who could make it even more perfect were Cass, Babs, Bruce, and Steph.

Watching circuitously, the four boys swiftly advanced (limped, in Tim's case) towards an old thrift store that most likely wouldn't ask questions if they payed the right price.

The jingle of the bell hanging by a frayed ribbon alerted the smoking store owner of their arrival, and while he raised an eyebrow at their unusual attire, said nothing more as they made their way further into the piles and racks of old used items.

Immediately, they each made beelines to their preferred choice of clothing. The racks were old and rusty, but held up through the tornado that was the boys and their clothing.

They all ended up picking two outfits for different situations, and though there wasn't a wide variety of articles or color, they'd suffice for the time being. (I would describe their outfits, but honestly, it isn't necessary and it's a waste of time. No offense to people who do that.) Then they picked up a few more items that might be essential in the long run.

Heading up to the counter, the Hispanic man didn't give them any trouble, but actually struck up a short conversation with Dick.

"Hello, I'm Matias Mendoza, but you can call me Mat. I don't usually get many customers, and out of the few, you are the most interesting I believe I've ever met."

It was clear that the man, despite his rough appearance was very extroverted and seemed to display pure curiosity, which Jason obviously disliked. He was about to tell the man to mind his own business (though not as politely), but Dick placed a hand on his arm, a silent warning to hold back.

"Hi, you seem nice!" Dick beamed, smiling amicably at the obviously interested store owner. "We've found ourselves in a rather sticky situation, and we're trying to lay low until we can find a way to fix it."

The man nodded in empathy. "I completely understand what you mean." he nodded, smiling sympathetically. "I was recently financially compromised, and my family was counting on me to pay the bills, so I had to find a quick job that payed well."

Damian looked on in annoyance, this conversation was getting them nowhere, and the man's face was to expressive to actually be feeling those emotions. Right?

Mat's eyebrows scrunched up, analyzing them quickly with a suspicious glance, then asked, "You don't got an any kind of partnership with the po po, do ya?"

Dick, carefully comprising his true thoughts behind a still friendly, carefree mask, shook his head, spoke a bit more, payed for the clothing, and discreetly led his brothers out of the thrift shop and with a nod of his head, they took off towards another alleyway, this one partially hidden from public view.

Once they were sure nobody was watching, they quickly stripped off their vigilante costumes, threw on the new clothes, and put all the unused clothing into the backpacks each of them had bought.

Walking, and limping, back onto the cracked sidewalk, they all acknowledged their increasing hunger and spotted the Mcdonald's down the road and changed direction to get to the food.

Helping Tim sit comfortably, they settled into the booth, Dick deciding to go order because he decided that Jason had zero normal social skills (or standards). As the three awkwardly sat there they saw a little girl being pulled out the door into a car with unusually dark windows by a large man.

Jason got up and caught up with the man, ignoring Damian's hissing and Tim's logical shit filtering through the comms.

"What do you think you're doing with her?" he growled. The man looked up at him and grinned while tightening the hold on her wrist.

"Fine. We'll share. I'm not against it." Jason let out a stream of expletives in other languages (You ask why? There's a kid. An unspoken and repeated rule is NEVER swear in front of a kid.).

"You - (I'm not gonna type it cuz I'm still a minor) let go of her. I don't fu-freakin' tolerate creeps like you. If you don't let go by the time I count to three, nothing, not even the strongest magic will bring you back." He seethed as he attempted to control his accumulating ire and contempt. The only reason he holding back was so that the girl wouldn't see anything too scarring.

"1…", the man took one peek at the flaming teal, almost green eyes, of the enraged marksman, and he let go of the girl, hopped in the car, and sped away, fearing for his life.

As he turned around to face the child, he found a woman with her arms enveloping her. The girl was sobbing into the older woman's shoulder.

The woman faced him and thanked him repeatedly. "If there's anything we can do for you in the future," Jason sucked in a surprised breath, then let it go. "Please, contact us. I can't believe that… thank you so much. My name is Amara and this is my daughter, Rose. Again. I can't thank you enough."

Her gratitude was overwhelming, but he wouldn't let anyone know that. "Your welcome." he smiled and accepted the slip of paper that she was holding out to him.

Heading back inside, Damian and Tim looked at him in acknowledgement, then went back to whatever they were doing before. Which was arguing.

"Drake, you idiot! You started this!" Damian snarled.

"What did I do? It's not my fault you turned out to be a little shit!" Tim countered.

Dick came back, gave Jason _the look_ , and sighed. It was only his family. But at least he had one.


	3. Remember - 3

The train whistled, the high pitched whine painfully resonating in their ears as they stepped onto the circus' large locomotive.

"Mami! Mami! Look!" Little eight year old Richard 'Dick' John Grayson pulled on his mother's sleeve as he pointed at the small colorful bird that swooped in front of the window, then pulled away, flapping its little wings, letting the wind carry it into the impossibly blue sky.

Mary Grayson smiled at her energetic son. Worry shot through her as she again remembered where they were headed. Gotham City. One of the most crime ridden places ever known to man. At least they weren't stopping at Bludhaven.

The train began to move and she felt a large hand wrap around hers. Looking up to the face of her husband, she smiled nervously again, her fears uneasily put to rest as he smiled reassuringly.

Twenty six year old Mary Grayson was born and raised in a small city on the coast of North Carolina. It was a boring area, no one usually visited, and most never left. She had always been expected to take over the small bakery by the seaside when she grew older.

However, she had wanted adventure, and the gymnastics lessons she had begun to take seriously at the age of eight had led her to run away to the circus. She had been sixteen at the time, and had ridden the train to where she had heard a circus, by the name of Haly's Circus, was stopping.

She had heard about their aerialists, the Flying Graysons, who were some of the most talented and experienced acrobats in the world. When she had reached the tent, she'd asked for a mister Cornelius Haly and was showed to the trailer by a handsome, obviously robust guy with an odd accent who was around her age.

When she had asked to train and join the act, Haly and the Graysons graciously accepted her with open arms.

From then on, she had worked hard and spent most of her time labouring and practising to become the best that she could be. Along with the hours she had spent on the trapeze and the bars, she'd also been conversing with the Grayson's son, John.

The amounting time they had spent together soon became a budding romance, and by the time they were eighteen, had married.

They'd barely been married for two months before Mary announced that she was pregnant. John had been very excited and had insisted on the fact that it was a boy. She'd laughed at his antics and he'd huffed at her ridicule.

When Dick was born, it had been completely unexpected, born two weeks before his due date, drawing the worry from all the circus family she had grown to love as they her. Dick had been born on the train because they couldn't get to the hospital in time. He was born in just under half an hour, extremely quick for any birth.

Dick was small and fragile, and Mary felt like anything could break him. He was a happy baby, always smiling, always laughing. But when he made a fuss, it was horrible. He would scream and cry at the top of his oddly very developed lungs, and the entire circus could hear him throughout the train.

Thankfully, Dick was not much for fussing. She and John had considered moving to settle somewhere to raise him, as John's parents had already decided to retire, but the rest of the circus folk had convinced them that Dick would love the Circus. That was probably just an excuse to allow them to continue doting on the child.

Dick was beautiful. He had her eyes and nose, and her husband's hair and jawline, perhaps possibly even her slimmer build, though that was indiscernible from simple observation.

She remembered watching him giggle up at her through his long, girlish lashes, her husband cooing at him. This was her heaven on earth with her son, her husband, and the large circus family they had.

Back to the present, they had all sat down on the cushioned but threadbare bench. Dick was fighting to keep his eyes open, but they fluttered shut, and his breathing slowed, indicating that he was fast asleep. He leaned down until his head was in her lap, resting heavily on her thighs. Another, heavier weight she was shoulder pronounced that her husband had just fallen asleep on her shoulder. Her small family was in for a cramped and sore surprise when they woke up.

She then smiled and nodded off, just happy that she was surrounded by the people she cared for most. Well, she was definitely going to regret the cramping in her neck, legs, back, and shoulder in the morning, but for now, she was content.

 **RobinsRobinsRobinsRobinsRobins**

The four boys had been getting by in the increasingly infuriating past. The debit cards that they had had let them live fairly well in comparison to a majority of Gotham's (horrible, filthy, and crime ridden) districts, and they had harnessed it to their advantage.

However, what the main antagonist was the technology. Tim was, no doubt, the most affected by this huge change. Hacking had gotten ten times harder, and it drove him to the point where he questioned the past society instead of giving his full attention to getting back to their time. How did people live like this?

Fully analyzing Dick finally pulled him out of his annoyance induced stupor. He'd quickly realized that his eldest brother had been growing more distant since they had arrived here.

Searching his brain for answers, he came to one conclusion. Dick, at this time, should have been eight years old, the age he'd been when his parents died. Turning to his old and stupidly slow, blocky computer, he searched up 'Circus'. Multiple links on the circus that was arriving in town were revealed. A majority of them were about Haly's Circus.

Sudden nostalgia knocked his mind back to a time in his youth where his parents hadn't quite begun to relinquish their attention for him yet.

He'd been only about two years old when Haly's had come to town, but he could talk as well as a fifth grader and walk. Well, walking was more of a problem. He couldn't get more than a few yards from his original standpoint without losing his balance and falling.

His parents had stayed around until he could walk and run perfectly well before neglecting him to check out dig sites in other countries and spend a good portion of their time commencing with business for Drake a result of his advanced knowledge, his parents had decided that he was old enough to take to the circus and be able to fully enjoy the sights that were unique to that particular attraction.

His memory of that night was immediately lucid as the glass on the table in front of him when he gently tugged it to the surface of his mind and focused on every detail of that night.

 _The smell of fresh, warm, buttery popcorn permeated the cool night air as his parents weaved their way across the lot. He was in his mother's arms, fascination saturating his gaze as he stared at the brightly colored objects that grew more and more abundant as they approached the large red and yellow tent._

 _The crowd became thicker as they reached the entrance, and the distinctive mingling scents of sweaty people, snacks, and manure hit them and they all gagged for a moment before attuning to it and ignoring it._

 _His attention was pulled away from the loud buzz of the people and he saw a small family of three, not unlike theirs, making their way to a trailer. They were sporting bright, form fitting costumes, and were grinning at each other, eyes sparkling. The father, a large, muscular man, chuckled when his son, executed a flawless back handspring and landed in his arms. The boy, obviously happy that he had extracted a laugh from his father, said something into his ear that he repeated to his mother, and they all fell into a fit of laughter._

 _His parents noticed him eyeing them, and they steered into the amassing crowd, finding seats that had a perfect view of the arena._ _When his dad had taken him to go get snacks, he had asked to be put on the floor. Carefully watching his footing and the constantly moving forest of legs, he crossed from one side of vendors to the other, drawn to the trailer with the boy and his parents._

 _He'd stumbled along before tripping right in front of the trailer he'd remembered. Embarrassment welling up inside of his at the fact that he couldn't pull himself back to a vertical position._ _He'd resigned himself to the mortifying act of crying or calling for help, when the door to the trailer opened, light pouring out of the open door. The mother, who had beautiful sky blue eyes, gingerly climbed down the small splintered steps and reached out for Tim._

 _"Where are your parents, bud? Mary? Did you have another kid without us noticing?" a deep jovial voice that definitely wasn't hers called out from inside the trailer. Mary had laughed at the question._

 _"Gee, John, I wonder?"_

 _The voice of a boy floated out from under a pile of blankets. "Can I see?"_

 _He'd explained to them to his eternal mortification, his situation, and they had first been surprised about how intelligent he was, then conversed with him for awhile before a heavy knocking interrupted._

 _His dad stood at the door, a frantic expression flitting across his face before he noticed Tim sitting contentedly on their son's lap._ _His dad had brought him back to their seats, relief pouring from his body language and expression. He didn't regret going to the trailer, but he did feel guilty about causing his dad to worry so much about him._

 _The knowledge that he'd gleaned from the the short conversation was worth the effort. Their names were John, Mary, and Richard Grayson, and he preferred to be addressed as 'Dick'. They were Aerialists. Cool. He'd also gotten Dick to promise that he would do the Grayson's signature quadruple flip for him. Those were the most important parts of the conversation, so he didn't focus on the rest._

 _The rest of the night was a blur, filled with bright colors, tigers, lions, and elephants, fire, water, and of course adrenaline to go with his amounting excitement._

 _Then came the final act, one he'd been waiting for, the Flying Graysons!_

 _Then began the horror._

 _John and Mary, who had already departed from the platforms, fell from the air with the sickening snap of the trapeze wires and crunch of their bodies making impact with the ground. He remembered hearing the sporadic sobs of the boy he'd already labeled as friend, then earsplitting shrieks as his parents and the rest of the crowd ushered their children away from the scene._ _He saw a lone man walk up to Dick and place his jacket over him, and he remembered no more._

Tim gasped as he was brought back to reality by the end of the memory and the draft of cold air that had filtered through the slightly opened window. It was odd for the end of July, but he paid no mind to it as he pieced together his theory in disbelief.

He should have thought of this before. Perhaps the agony of that moment that he felt for the family, had coerced his subconscious to let the memory go and allow it to slip away into the depths of his head, only to be returned when intentionally recalled.

He turned off the trashy piece of junk, stood up, turned around, and left the room, determination set in his stride.

 **RobinsRobinsRobinsRobinsRobins**

When Mary woke up, it was to the raucous snores of her husband and the shivering of her son. The train wasn't moving. She looked out the window, and, sure enough, the smog that was usually present in Gotham tinted the sky.

She first reached for one of the blankets folded on the floor and draped it around her son. When she was satisfied that he wasn't cold anymore, she roughly shook her husband awake.

When he finally raised his head, she realized that there was a drool stain on the sleeve of her shirt. As he shook the sleep from his head and loosened his sore muscles, he noticed her icy glare in his direction. Brown eyes met steely, almost ice blue eyes, and the brown ones shot down in defeat.

Mary was pretty good at glaring. It was also well known that if you messed with her, you'd either end up with a broken ego or a broken face.

Mary gave a sigh as she motioned to his face, indicating that he should wipe it. She couldn't help but notice the rippling muscle that showed through every step, and think about how lucky she was. Her husband's darker skin from his Romani heritage accented this aspect, and she greatly appreciated this. Dick was definitely going to be an eyecatcher when he grew up. He had already inherited darker skin from John, though not as dark because of her pale skin, but it was good enough.

True to her speculations, Dick had turned out to look a lot like her. He had her eyes, nose, and slenderer face shape, while he'd gotten John's jaw and hair, and a mixture of their lips. He was very skinny for his age, but he also had a body that was not quite hers, and not quite her husband's.

A loud clatter from outside the train woke Dick up, and Mary realized with displeasure that he had also ended up drooling all over her pants. 'Something that only a mother can love', was one of her repetetive mantras.

When the the two boys had cleaned themselves up and gotten dressed, and they had all washed up and eaten breakfast, they'd headed out to help set up everything.

She stepped out of the train to utter chaos. Zitka, her son's favorite elephant, was loose, all Dick's handwork for sure, and he was hanging onto her leg for dear life. Pandemonium ensued.

This could not be her life.

A/N: So, sorry I haven't updated in a long time, but school has been getting harder, and finals barely leave time for anything. I know that I changed the stories like, probably, a lot, but I want Jason and Tim to not be as close in age as as they are. The ages actually confuse me a LOT. I also had some pretty bad writer's block. Also, Sorry about the inconsistencies and grammatical errors in my writing. Happy holidays!


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